Side Story

Under the warm sunshine, the greenery deepened, accompanied by the sound of midday insects and the occasional pleasant breeze.

It was already the beginning of a lush summer.

Hugo ran up the green hill, carelessly tossed his jacket aside, and plopped down.

Below the hill, the entire view of the abandoned hunting ground spread out before him.

Skylarks playing over the verdant field, fruit trees with lush green leaves, bushes of various sizes, and nameless wildflowers blooming between them.

A peaceful smile spread across Hugo’s face as he quietly took in the scenery.

“Boss, how long has it been since you left the battlefield, yet you still run so fast? Haa, whew……”

James complained, holding his knees and bending forward while continuously exhaling rough breaths.

“You lack exercise, James. That’s why I told you not to just sit at your desk but to work out a bit.”

Hugo quietly said as he lightly patted the spot beside him.

James plopped down in that spot and looked at the scenery below the hill while breathing heavily.

“This place has become so beautiful that it’s hard to believe it was once desolate. Is it similar to how it used to be?”

“It’s quite recovered.”

The abandoned hunting ground had now fully regained its former beauty.

In just a few weeks, Hugo and Yvonne’s wedding would be held there.

The two men silently gazed down at the place where Hugo’s happiness was scheduled to unfold.

After a while, James checked his pocket watch, brushed off his pants, and stood up.

“It’s almost time for the madam’s car to arrive. We should head out.”

Hugo nodded slowly and walked down the hill toward the entrance of the hunting ground, putting on his tuxedo jacket.

“What a state you’re in. Your tuxedo is wrinkled.”

“Badly?”

“A bit. Not suitable for a royal gathering, I’d say. Anyway, the madam won’t be pleased.”

Hugo smiled faintly as he buttoned his jacket.

By the time his steps had crossed the iron gate, Yvonne, who had opened the car window to greet Hugo but then noticed his appearance, murmured with a displeased expression.

“Hugo……”

Hugo shrugged his shoulders and walked to the other side of the car before getting in.

“Hello, Yvonne. You’ve become even prettier since this morning.”

Though Hugo’s greeting sounded teasing, his words were true.

Yvonne’s dress was completely different from when she had gone to work at the hotel that morning, and she was more elaborately dressed than usual.

After briefly accepting Hugo’s kiss with a smile, Yvonne pouted her lips, which were coated with pale pink lipstick.

“You looked more handsome than this morning, but…… your clothes seem wrinkled.”

She continued speaking as she removed grass from Hugo’s shoulder.

“And you’ve come back with grass all over you, like a puppy that rolled in a meadow.”

“……Strictly speaking, it’s not ‘all over.'”

The car carrying them started smoothly.

“Did you really need to stop by the abandoned hunting ground now? Of course, I know how much you love that place.”

“Yes, I had to come here now.”

As Yvonne pursed her lips again at Hugo’s words, a mischievous expression gradually spread across her face.

“Are you that eager for our wedding?”

Hugo laughed softly at her teasing question and replied, “Of course I am.”

After answering, his gaze turned toward the window.

After watching Hugo for a moment, Yvonne read his complicated feelings in his face reflected in the window.

‘I suppose…… that’s how it would be.’

The car carrying the two was now heading to the Divine Palace.

They were on their way to attend the royal gathering that Queen Charlotte had mentioned during their last audience.

Hugo seemed to be trying not to show it, but Yvonne noticed his tension growing deeper as the appointed day approached.

Of course, today being the day of the appointment, his tension would have reached its peak.

A father he had never seen since birth, and a man who had coldly abandoned his mother, causing her death.

Even someone like Hugo Wenner couldn’t help but have complicated feelings as he approached the moment of meeting him.

‘He probably visited the hunting ground before heading to the palace to try to calm his mind a little.’

Yvonne carefully took Hugo’s hand as he remained lost in thought, his gaze still fixed outside the window.

At that moment, Hugo finally emerged from his thoughts, turned to Yvonne, and smiled softly.

“What is it?”

“Nothing, I just wanted to hold your hand.”

Smiles spread across both their faces as they looked at each other.

As they spent time in light conversation, the car finally reached the front gate of the Divine Palace.

The procedure for entering the palace was the same as before, but the hospitality of Marquis Richmond, the Queen’s secretary who greeted them, was more evident than before.

Guided to a small banquet hall, they waited for a moment in front of empty tables where no one had yet arrived.

Before long, the royal family members entered the banquet hall one after another.

Queen Charlotte and her younger brother Duke Dwight with his wife, the two princes and princesses with their spouses, and the invited Marquis Richmond and his wife.

They each took their designated seats after receiving polite greetings from the Wenner couple.

“Finally, this day has come. I can’t tell you how much I’ve been waiting for the day when the Wenner couple would attend a royal gathering.”

The Queen made no attempt to hide her welcoming feelings toward the couple as soon as she took her seat at the head of the table.

After briefly looking kindly at Hugo’s face as he expressed his gratitude, the Queen’s gaze slowly moved toward the only empty seat at the table.

Soon, a long sigh escaped her lips.

“If only he would arrive soon. He’s the type of person who just has to show his dislike for attending gatherings.”

The princess sent a gentle smile toward the Queen, who was shaking her head.

“He’ll come soon. Grand Duke Merriott is sometimes late, but he never misses a gathering once he’s agreed to attend.”

The princess’s gaze shifted to Hugo as soon as she mentioned Grand Duke Merriott.

Her eyes carried a faint, knowing smile, and that look drifted toward Yvonne.

“Mrs. Wenner…… no, I should call you Count Rosier now. It’s nice to see you, and congratulations.”

Yvonne responded with a slight bow of her head and a smile.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

“As the first female head of a family in the Empire, you’ll go down in Vertis’s history. How does that feel?”

“How it feels, well……”

Yvonne’s gaze, which had been drawing out the end of her sentence, turned toward Queen Charlotte.

“I can only express my deepest gratitude to Your Majesty for giving me this precious opportunity. It still feels like a dream that I can continue my family’s legacy, the Rosier family, with my own hands.”

The second prince’s wife added to the conversation.

“Of course you should preserve it. You’ve protected your family and hotel through such hardship. Now that we’ve met in person, I must say……”

She glanced alternately at her husband and the Queen, then confessed quietly.

“I read every single article you contributed to the capital newspaper. I swear to God, not a single one was missed!”

Despite being a member of the royal family, the second prince’s wife seemed young, displaying more vitality than dignity.

Like Yvonne, the others seated around the table also found her endearing, and everyone shared a laugh.

“Actually, I too read it a few times, even while teasing my wife for being so fond of it.”

The second prince added with a smile directed at his wife.

“Though it was only fragments of a longer piece, it was truly shocking. To think you endured those things that would be difficult even to read as fiction, and then overcame them so admirably to become Count Rosier and the true owner of the Rosier Hotel. This is nothing short of a complete reversal of fortune.”

“I’m truly grateful that you think so, Your Highness.”

“Ah! I heard about that too.”

The second prince’s gaze shifted to Hugo.

“You’re naming that train station in front of the hotel ‘Rosier Hotel Station,’ aren’t you?”

When Hugo nodded slowly and confirmed it, a broad smile blossomed on the second prince’s face.